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5500 Preparer's Manual for 2012 Plan Years
The premier resource in the field of Form 5500 preparation, 5500 Preparer's Manual will help you handle the required annual Form 5500 filings for both pension benefits and welfare benefit plans.
from Spencer’s Benefits Reports: Employer-provided benefits costs for civilian workers in private industry and state and local governments in September 2008 averaged $8.74 per hour worked, accounting for 30.3% of total compensation costs, which averaged $28.87 per hour worked. Benefits as a percentage of compensation have risen in the past three years from 27.4% of total compensation, although that percentage has been stable in the last year. These are among the findings of the September 2008 Employer Costs for Employee Compensation report, produced quarterly by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).
Insurance benefits averaged $2.42 per hour, or 8.4% of total compensation, in September 2008, representing the largest nonwage employer cost (see chart below). Legally required benefits averaged $2.27 (7.9%), employer costs for paid leave benefits averaged $2.03 (7.0%), and retirement and savings benefits averaged $1.28 (4.4%) per hour worked.
Private industry. According to the BLS, private industry benefits costs averaged $7.93 per hour, accounting for 29.3% of total compensation costs, which averaged $27.07 per hour worked. Private industry employer costs for paid leave averaged $1.81 per hour worked (6.7%), insurance benefits averaged $2.07 (7.7%), retirement and savings benefits averaged 97 cents (3.6%), and legally required benefits averaged $2.26 (8.3%) per hour worked.
Health care benefits, private industry. The average cost for health care benefits in private industry was $1.93 per hour worked (7.12% of total compensation) in September 2008. Among occupational groups, employer costs for health care benefits ranged from 91 cents per hour and 6.8% of total compensation for service workers to $2.80 and 5.8% of total compensation for management, professional, and related occupations. Among other occupational categories, employer costs for health benefits averaged $1.68 (7.9%) for sales and office occupations, $2.33 (7.6%) for natural resources, construction, and maintenance occupations, and $2.22 (9.5%) for production, transportation, and material moving occupations.
State and local governments. In September 2008, state and local government benefits costs accounted for 34.2% of total compensation, or $13.41 per hour worked. Employer costs for insurance benefits averaged $4.39 per hour, or 11.2% of total compensation. The largest component of insurance costs was for health insurance, which averaged $4.21 per hour worked, or 10.8% of total compensation. The average cost for retirement and savings benefits in state and local governments was $3.09 per hour worked, or 7.9% of total compensation. Costs for legally required benefits averaged $2.33 per hour worked, or 5.9% of total compensation.
Relative Importance Of Employer Costs For Employee Compensation, September 2008
| All Civilian Workers | State, Local Governments | Private Industry | |
| Wages And Salaries | 69.7% | 65.8% | 70.7% |
| Benefits | 30.3 | 34.2 | 29.3 |
| Paid Leave | 7.0 | 8.3 | 6.7 |
| Supplemental Pay | 2.6 | 0.9 | 3.0 |
| Insurance | 8.4 | 11.2 | 7.7 |
| Health Care Benefits | 7.9 | 10.8 | 7.1 |
| Retirement & Savings | 4.4 | 7.9 | 3.6 |
| Defined Benefit | 2.7 | 7.0 | 1.6 |
| Defined Contribution | 1.8 | 0.9 | 2.0 |
| Legally Required | 7.9 | 5.9 | 8.4 |
For a complete copy of the BLS report, visit http://www.bls.gov/news.release/ecec.toc.htm.
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